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Salted Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies

The BEST EVER chocolate chip cookies just got a makeover – super soft and chewy and stuffed with caramel, the flavor and texture is absolute perfection!

I almost called these, the ultimate most incredibly soft and chewy stuffed with salted caramel and wonderfully perfect cookies on the planet. But I ran out of room and it was sort of mouthful. Which is kind of an issue because my mouth was also stuffed with cookie so there just wasn’t any spare room for a title like that. Salted caramel chocolate chip cookies is gonna have to do.

Look at that gooey caramel right in the center there. Do you see that? Are you drooling yet?

There are a couple of easy peasy tricks to making these dreamboats. First off, you need instant vanilla pudding. It will make the cookies soft in the center but still lightly crispy on the outside – the perfect texture. Plus a little extra vanilla never hurt in the flavor department.

I love me some vanilla.

Another key step is the chilling time. I know, it’s hard to wait, but it is SO worth it. It’s like Christmas – well worth the wait. Just plan ahead and give yourself an hour to throw the dough in the fridge – just one hour! You can totally wait an hour.

I have faith in you.

And lastly, you’ve gotta make these cookies BIG. Each cookie requires about 6-7 tablespoons of dough. This is another part of that texture thing we were talking about. Yes, you can technically use a smaller amount of dough and make smaller cookies, but they won’t be and dense and chewy in the middle – they’ll be crispier. Not necessarily a bad thing, but these cookies are intended to be big and super soft in the middle.

And the last thing, my own little tip for enjoying these at their very best… After letting them cool completely to room temperature you warm them back up. I know, that seems completely contradictory to warm them up after letting them cool. But here’s how it works. The middle of the cookies needs to cool completely in order to get the correct chewy texture, but then when you warm them up the caramel gets all ooey gooey. Just trust me on this one – you’ll totally get it after the first bite!

Start by beating butter and sugars together for 1-2 minutes until very fluffy. Add vanilla and egg and mix well. In a separate bowl whisk together flour, pudding mix, baking soda, and salt. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix until incorporated and dough comes together. Stir in chocolate chips. Cover and chill for at least 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 350 and very lightly grease baking sheets. (I lightly mist mine with cooking spray, then wipe it off with a paper towel, too much grease will yield very flat cookies!) Roll about 3-4 tablespoons of the chocolate chip cookie dough into a ball , then repeat with 3-4 more tablespoons of dough. Press a caramel square into the center of one dough ball. Gently smash the two dough balls together and roll into one single ball. Repeat with remaining dough and place dough balls at least 3-4 inches apart on the baking sheet. Poke additional chocolate chips into the top of each cookie if desired (this is just for looks).

Bake cookies for 10-13 minutes until set but still slightly undercooked. Remove from oven and (optional) sprinkle immediately with coarse sea salt (highly recommended!). Allow to cool at least 10 minutes on baking sheet, then transfer to a cooling rack and allow to completely cool to room temperature. Store in airtight container.

Notes

*Prep and bake time does not include 1 hour of chilling time - it's so worth it!

Kate

Tiffany

I am absolutely in love with this recipe. And the photography is beautiful! I am so going to try to recreate this amazingness. The cookies are literally eatable off the computer screen. lol Thanks for sharing!!! Xx

Tiffany

I’m so glad you liked them! I’d love for you to share the on your blog – you can either 1) share one of my images with a link back to my blog for the full recipe, or 2) make and photograph the recipe yourself and share your own photo with the recipe re-written in your own words on your blog, including a link to my blog for the source. Thanks Merina~! 🙂

Allaina

Tiffany

That’s so strange that they didn’t spread out – I’ve made these twice since Christmas and they spread out nicely, without becoming “flat” which is part of why I love them so much. Did you grease your baking pan at all?

OPet

Tiffany

Hi! I wrote the recipe per my notes when I was baking these so whatever is in the recipe, that’s what worked for me! There are lots of recipes I’ve tried from other people though and they sometimes require a little tweaking on my end – that’s just the nature of baking and cooking. I hope you enjoyed these cookies though! 🙂

KT

I love the idea. I find the dough itself too dry and difficult to roll, esp after chilling.
But when i modified the dough it turned out lovely using 1 and 1/4 cup (160g)all-purpose flour instead of 2 cups, they came out perfectly.

Tiffany

Ed

Hi there
These look amazing and I want to give them a shot!
Just two questions.
1. When you say vanilla, do you mean essence or extract?
2. What is instant vanilla pudding mix? I am in Australia so I’m not sure if we have a similar product in the shops.

Tiffany

Tiffany

Gracella

This was a delicious recipe! I loved the salt on top; it really added a nice touch to the cookie. I did notice that my caramel stayed in a block in the center of the cookie. Is that supposed to happen?

Claudia

Is 13 minutes the maximum? And did you flatten the balls of cookie dough before? Mine have been cooking at 350 for almost 15 mins now, still not cooked all the way. Each cookie is huge, 6 tablespoons like you said, and I don’t know what I’m doing wrong.

Tiffany

Hi Claudia,

Not sure what might have gone wrong for you… the cookies are indeed very big and thick and the consistency of these cookies should be more like a soft-baked cookie. They should seem slightly underdone when you take them out of the oven and then they should cool on the pan so they continue baking outside of the oven. They should be very most and tender in the middle but solid once completely (100%) cooled 🙂

carrie

Tiffany

Hi Carrie, shouldn’t be an issue, I’ve chilled them overnight without any problems – just keep an eye on them as they may need a little more baking time and flattening them slightly with the palm of your hand before popping them into the oven will help them spread properly!

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Jenna

I made these last night for a dinner with several siblings-in-law and their significant others. A couple of my own findings:

-3-4 tablespoons per half cookie resulted in pre-baked portions the size of tennis balls. Way too big. 3-4 tablespoons total worked much better. Still baked for 13 minutes and they came out great.
– Reserve 1/2 cup of the chocolate chips for pressing into the top. Even if you don’t press them in, 1 1/2 cups is plenty.
-Mine did not spread all that much, and I liberally greased my pan. I might chill for only 20-30 minutes next time and see if that helps.
-The sea salt is everything to these. Use it!
-10 seconds in the microwave after storing them makes them divine.

My guests absolutely loved these and I’m sure I will make them again. Even my usually nit-picky husband couldn’t find anything wrong with them! Thanks for a great recipe!

Teresa

Mine turned out great! Also only used 1 1/2 cup of chocolate chips and topped them off on top of the cookie before putting in the oven. I probably used less than 1/4 cup though. I also used caramel bits instead of the caramel cubes. They smell delish. Haven’t tried them yet, mine are on the cooling rack right now. 🙂

Kaelan

I really want to make these cookies! They look delicious! What is the vanilla pudding mix for? Do I need it? Is there something else I can substitute it for? Thanks!
P.S. I would really like to make these soon so the sooner you can reply the better!

Mel

Tiffany

Kate

I found this recipe on Pinterest-it was my first shot at a Pinterest recipe and a total Pinterest win!! These are SO delicious and surprisingly simple (the hardest part for me was finding the caramels!) although I wonder how in the world you got 24 cookies out of this recipe? I measured out 3-4 tablespoons for each half of the cookie, and ended up only using one 3-4 TBSP ball (which worked great) and still only got about 15 cookies.They are so rich, though, for the first time in history I was able to eat just one in a sitting(even though I wanted to eat them all). Definitely a new favorite recipe!

Also, I don’t know if you greased purely for non-stick or if you meant for there to be a bit of grease, but I used parchment paper and it worked perfectly with no grease.

Julia

I rolled the balls and put the caramels in before chilling. It was much easier than working with the chilled dough. Since this is the first time I’ve made them I can only guess the texture is right. Thanks so much for a delicious recipe.

Alice

These are actually amazing! Thank you so much for sharing. I’ve made hear for Mother’s Day. I am in the UK and substitutes instant vanilla pudding mix with Angel Delight, although I am told creme caramel mix would be better (I couldn’t find it). I think they have worked well – that ear just on the cooling rack and smell and look wonderful! They look like they have the right texture anyway. First class!

Tiffany

Hi Marie, I’m so sorry I wasn’t able to get back to you before St. Patrick’s Day! For future reference I do think that freezing, then thawing and warming would work! If you tried it I’d love to know how they turned out!

Erin

Carla

Wow! Made these over the weekend. Patience is the key to these delicious cookies. I had to cook them for 15 minutes in my oven. The trick is to wait for a few hours to eat. Although, my family devoured a few hot ones with a spoon. Lol. These would be amazing to make a day early for an event. Thank you for sharing the recipe

Tiffany

Marcus Anthony

I just followed your recipe exactly using 3 level tablespoons per half. This results in 13 tennis ball sized cookies. I know you keep replying that they are bakery style and should be large – but I think your directions are wrong. If I use 3 TEASPOONS per half then I get a golf ball sized cookie that you mention in your reply to one of the comments. Can you double check which size you mean.

Cassandra

Hello,
I am curious how many cookies this recipe yields? It looks like about 12 or so. (I used half of my dough on 6 by the looks of it) The recipe says 24 caramels and I am trying to figure out why so many? Did you use 2 per cookie?

Thanks! They are baking now and I cannot wait to see how they turn out.

Emily

These are in my oven right now! I also used fewer chocolate chips. I only have 11 cookies baking, following the recipe to use 3-4tbs per half. No idea how anyone could get 24 cookies doing that. Sadly, now I have several unwrapped caramels that I don’t know what to do with. Hmm…better eat them so they don’t get hard! 😉

Judy

Karen

I just made these cookies, and I am a little disappointed. Mine did not spread out at all in the oven The dough was really dry also. After reading the other comments, I’m going to reduce the flour to 1& 1/4 cups and not wipe off the grease on the cookie sheet. And add a couple more minutes to the baking time because my caramels did not melt. But they taste fabulous! Wish me luck.

Karen

C

These cookies are AMAZING. I made it for my boyfriend and hes always asking for me to make them. He gave some to his family and they all want the recipe! When you microwave them theyre nice and gooey! When theyre at room temp theyre nice and chewy cookies! This is the best recipe i found on pinterest!